The Christmas Present By James Michener It was the turn of the century and I was a mere boy of 10. During the summers, I cut the ...

Saturday, April 30, 2011

"MUSIC IS EVERYWHERE"

"Thank you for the music

the songs I'm singin'.

Thanks for all the joy they're bringin'.

Who can live without it?

I ask in all honesty,

what would life be?

Without a song or a dance

what are we?

So I say thank you for the music

for giving it to me." ~ABBA

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain."

-Bob Marley

Where words fail, music speaks." - Hans Christian Anderson

*Quotes from SheetMusicFox.Com

I found so many quotes about music: There are literally thousands of them. But I will spare you, trust me.

What I wanted to say is that everyone knows that music creates a mood. What would television commercials be without it? Or if you are watching a scary movie, you know good and well when the music picks up a certain tempo that something bad is going to happen. I will never forget when the movie, “Jaws” first came out: It scared me to death! A huge clue that the shark was coming was that specific music you heard each time—you know exactly what I mean. Worse was the fact that the very next week after “Jaws” came out, we went to the beach!

Tried to pacify my then-young teenage sons that if there were sharks, they’d hear that music that was in “Jaws” first. Didn’t work. And they were just as scared as I was that summer.

Both of them listened to Queen, Kiss and Metallica and since both had separate rooms, it also meant separate stereo systems. The music was so loud that it shook the house and set me crazy! Yes, I did along with their father, take them to many concerts: Kiss stands out the most for I did like their costumes but hadn’t developed an appreciation for their music at that time. I was into rock and roll and jazz at that time.

[When I was little I had developed an appreciation for classical music as both my grandmother and mother played the piano. I would too as I had to take piano lessons for eight long years and I hated it! It wasn’t that I hated music but more the teacher who would hit me across my knuckles if I struck a wrong note or make me copy sheet music for an hour if I didn’t play well. Sometimes people can make or break you: She broke me. But she didn’t break my love for music!]

Once I heard that music appeals to us for a lot of it has the same tempo as our heartbeat: That makes a lot of sense. Over the years, I have developed an appreciation for almost all kinds of music and even learned to like Queen and Kiss! I have those cd’s in my car: Who would have ever guessed that? But I love jazz, reggae, rock, oldies, Celtic music and current music. Sometimes I just like to listen to classical music for it calms me down; there would be no way I'd listen to it in my car for I would fall asleep at the wheel.

We live in an incredible time of music: It’s everywhere! We can download it, watch videos on you tube, hear it in movies on our dvds, listen to it online or in our house or cars and either appreciate it or not. But one thing is for sure: It is an international language that is understood by all and there are no words needed to detect the mood. Try watching a familiar movie and turn off the sound and see if has the same effect on you—bet it doesn’t! What seemed happy or scary is not the same without music. Try it!

All of us have certain songs that we just can't listen to for they bring back bad memories or the thought of a lost love while other songs make us feel happy and good. Some music reminds us of extremely sad times and we can't listen to it. Association is one thing that goes hand in hand with music: It affects our moods and our lives. Wherever you live, you have music that is native to your home and you appreciate it or maybe not--maybe you like imported music. Does that matter? No way.

One thing is for sure: Music will always be with us and that’s a good thing. When words fail, music will always be there to fill the void. And no matter the words, we know the feeling and enjoy it if it's something we like. Crank up the sound and live it up! Life's too short.

About Me

I was an elementary teacher for 35 years but before and during teaching, I worked for 7 summers as a typist for the Dept.of Transportation. Have always written and painted in what seems like forever. I have a BS degree in Education and English and a masters degree in communication. Was a volunteer for Goodwill for 14 years during which time I served on the board of directors for 8 years. Writing and painting have been a part of my life since I was four; it is not something that I see as being audacious but more of something that is inside of me that has to surface. And I believe that everyone has a creative gene be it connected to music,acting, photography, design,advertising or any avenue that calls for creativity. It is what makes us unique. The Charleston Gazette has been so gracious in publishing many of my stories;some have been in the Charleston Daily Mail as well. And a friend of mine let me use his lobby for my first art show a year and a half ago. Dreams do come true. I have been published in The Charleston Gazette, The Daily Mail and http://usads.ms11.net/sherry2.html. Of late, I've self-published 11 Amazon Kindle E books. Be sure to check them out and thank you.